Fans of historical fiction writer Lauren Chater will fall in love with her latest novel, The Beauties (Simon and Schuster 2024), a meticulously researched and well-written story set in the 17th century which showcases the lush, rich and glorious appreciation of beauty at the time, and the inner workings of the lower and middle classes who spent their lives making beautiful art, music and words for King Charles II.
Told from the point of view of several protagonists, the story centres on the Duchess of York, Anne Hyde, who commissions a series of paintings of the most beautiful women in the court entourage, with the hope that the collection, The Beauties, will capture not only the loveliness of each individual woman, but in total will encapsulate and communicate something about beauty itself.
For most women, it is an honour to be chosen to sit for this special portrait. But for the stunning Emelia Lennox, it is a double-edged sword. She has arrived in London intent on convincing the King to restore her husband’s lands, estate and reputation, after it was all confiscated as a punishment for his family’s treason. Hoping to appeal to the King’s mercy, and his capacity to forgive any crime and restore her husband’s good name and faithfulness to the crown, she approaches Court with an anxious optimism. Once the King sees her beauty, he agrees to grant her request, but only if she agrees to become his mistress (yet another in a long line). Unable to contact her beloved husband away on business, Emilia is faced with an unbearable decision but decides to keep the king at arm’s length by asking for a condition of her own: that she will become his mistress only if he includes her portrait in the collection of the Windsor Beauties. Paintings take many months to complete and Emilia hopes that before the painting is finished, her husband will be home to clarify his wishes and approve her decision.
Peter Lely is the court painter, charged with finishing the portraits, but he has two ambitious assistants, Henry and Mary, and a contingent of young boys training in portraiture. The assistants are especially involved in completing the initial sketches of the women and adding specialised touches and techniques to make them truly shine. Henry Greenhill in particular sees this collection as an opportunity to make a name for himself and become a noted painter in his own right. But Emelia Lennox is proving difficult to pin down, even for an initial sitting, and the more elusive she becomes (as she waits for word from her husband), the more he gets to know and respect her, not only for her charming visage but for her personality.
The Beauties is researched in much detail and the court of the day (and the many minor players that people the canvas of this story with colour and sparkle) is painstakingly recreated through evocative scenery, authentic dialogue and a wholly realistic sense that the reader has fallen through a rabbit hole into the esteemed court of the King and his entourage. Themes include love, friendship, artistic integrity and ambition, rivalry, passion, intimacy, seduction, hardship, loyalty, sacrifice and determination, threaded with the fascinating details of 17th century painting techniques and etiquette. What is the price of beauty? And what woman is willing to pay that price for others, or to gain what she most wants for herself?